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View synonyms for

contempt

[ kuhn-tempt ]

noun

  1. the feeling with which a person regards anything considered mean, vile, or worthless; disdain; scorn.
  2. the state of being despised; dishonor; disgrace.
  3. Law.
    1. willful disobedience to or open disrespect for the rules or orders of a court contempt of court or legislative body.
    2. an act showing such disrespect.


contempt

/ əˈɛ /

noun

  1. the attitude or feeling of a person towards a person or thing that he considers worthless or despicable; scorn
  2. the state of being scorned; disgrace (esp in the phrase hold in contempt )
  3. wilful disregard of or disrespect for the authority of a court of law or legislative body

    contempt of court

“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Other Word Forms

  • -Dz·ٱ𳾱 noun
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Word History and Origins

Origin of contempt1

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin contemptus “despising, scorn,” noun derivative of contemnere “to despise, scorn”; contemn
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Word History and Origins

Origin of contempt1

C14: from Latin contemptus a despising, from contemnere to contemn
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Idioms and Phrases

see familiarity breeds contempt .
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Synonym Study

contempt , disdain , scorn imply strong feelings of disapproval and aversion toward what seems base, mean, or worthless. contempt is disapproval tinged with disgust: to feel contempt for a weakling . disdain is a feeling that a person or thing is beneath one's dignity and unworthy of one's notice, respect, or concern: a disdain for crooked dealing . scorn denotes open or undisguised contempt often combined with derision: He showed only scorn for those who were not as ambitious as himself.
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

"The very idea that the FA can disregard the Supreme Court shows a foolhardy contempt for the law. Every passing day makes it worse" he said.

From

Or the journalist does not reveal their source, is held in contempt of court, and goes to jail.

From

District Judge James E. Boasberg, who threatened to hold White House officials in contempt of court for not following his earlier orders to stop a plane carrying deportees to an El Salvador prison midflight.

From

“How much contempt is stirred up at times toward the vulnerable, the marginalized and migrants!” he said in his Easter address, shortly before his death.

From

A separate feud has been brewing after a judge said he could hold the Trump administration in contempt for its "wilful disregard" of his order barring deportation flights.

From

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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